Choosing a classic style for the living room interior is a decision that cannot be regretted, because discreet and cozy classics will not become outdated and will not lose their charm over time. But how to create the perfect interior and not make mistakes? What colors should I use? How to properly zone space? Everything you need to know about a living room in a classic style is in our article.
Features of the classic style
There are interior design styles that are rapidly gaining popularity or have already gone out of fashion, and there is a design that will never become outdated or lose its relevance. The classic living room is a unique and universal concept that involves creating a luxurious, elegant and cozy interior that demonstrates the respectability of the owner.
Moreover, unlike pompous baroque with flashy gilding or art deco with complex curved geometric elements, the classical style is quite restrained and carefully simple, without becoming boring or losing its attractiveness over time.
Creating a living room in a classic style will require ideal taste and subtle calculations, because, unlike many modern design options, the classic does not forgive negligence and mistakes in execution. It is not for nothing that the word “classic” itself is of Latin origin and is translated as “delightful” or “ideal.”
Complicating the task is the need to place, combine in color, materials and texture many elements necessary to create a classic living room. You can discard one or more, but without using most of them it is impossible to create a reference design:
- Fireplace with a portal and live or artificial fire;
- Furniture made of natural wood or veneer;
- Molded parts - ceiling rosettes, cornices, baseboards, columns;
- Accessories - paintings, candlesticks, figurines, vases and mirrors;
- Lighting details as a decorative element - chandeliers, sconces, floor lamps;
- Natural materials with rich texture - fabrics, wood, stone.
Symmetry and organic arrangement of furniture, strict lines and discreet patterns, exquisite details and perfect composition - these are the basic rules for organizing a classic space.
Decor
A classic living room cannot lack decor. These are a variety of stylish figurines, candlesticks, and antiques.
The walls of the room are decorated with paintings, and pots with beautiful plants can be placed on the floor.
The presence of mirrors in exquisite frames will give the room more light and space. A fireplace will be a wonderful addition, but the TV will have to be framed in a massive but elegant wooden frame.
The classic style may change slightly over time, but luxury and chic remain in it no matter the changes, filling the house with splendid decoration.
Photos of a classic living room will help you appreciate this lush elegance.
Colors: white living room, beige, gray
The constant constancy of the classic style is also ensured by the win-win combinations of shades in its execution. There cannot be any flashy, dissonant or unnatural combinations of colors in such a living room by default.
The choice of palette for a classic interior depends on the size of the room and the level of illumination in it and is based on the soft contrast of light and dark pastel shades.
Important! If the room is not very large, then you should choose a light background with relatively dark furniture and accents, and a large, open space will allow you to use thick dark shades on the floors and walls, diluted with light furniture and textiles.
The most popular color combinations to bring this style to life:
- Beige-chocolate palette with different shades of cream, sand and khaki;
- Beige-green palette with chocolate, mustard and pistachio shades;
- A blue and white palette with various shades of ivory and blue;
- Sand and burgundy palette with chocolate or pink shades;
- White and gray palette with caramel and cream shades.
You can use more colors, but they should all be soft, natural pastel tones. Professional designers can successfully complement such an interior with bright accessories, but just a few incorrectly selected details can completely destroy the restrained harmony of the classics.
Decoration Materials
It is customary to decorate the walls of a classic living room exclusively with natural, high-quality materials. A good solution would be plastering with expensive types of decorative plaster or pasting with elegant wallpaper options. To add palace luxury, the design of the walls of the classic-style living room is complemented with stucco or half-columns.
An ideal option for finishing the floor is laying parquet boards with geometric patterns. To create a glossy effect, the top of the parquet is coated with a layer of varnish. You can also use wood imitation as a finish. In expensive residential premises you can see marble covering on the floor.
To finish a perfectly flat ceiling, you can use whitewash, decorated with decorative stucco or moldings. If there are high ceilings in the living room, it is currently customary to install multi-level suspended structures made from a combination of plasterboard and film sheets. This allows you to create a real work of art on the ceiling.
Living room in a classic style: modern interior design
Just a few decades ago, a classic interior could only be created from expensive natural materials - precious wood, natural stone, silk, velvet, and so on. Today, a variety of finishing materials allows you to successfully imitate wooden, plaster and stone surfaces and avoid enormous costs .
However, fine imitation and crude counterfeiting are not the same thing, so the quality of artificial materials should be met with no less demands than with natural ones.
When choosing a coating, you should follow several immutable rules in order to maintain the chosen style and not disturb the overall composition.
Textile
The sophistication of style and elegance of the room will be conveyed by classic curtains into the living room.
These can be matte English curtains, shiny curtains that come from Rococo, lush French or Austrian curtains.
The style can be complemented by pillows made of expensive natural fabric, a floor carpet, and wall tapestries.
Walls
The walls of a classic living room can be either a neutral and unobtrusive background or a decorative element. This style allows you to create compositions on the walls from stucco moldings, wooden or fabric panels, use wallpaper with prints and plain ones at the same time, and create an unusual texture using decorative plasters. However, you should use such artistic techniques carefully so as not to oversaturate the interior with details - the use of complex wall decoration implies restraint in furniture and textiles .
Bright living room
Bright colored elements can not only enliven the interior, but also fill the classic living room with unique color and expressiveness.
Ceiling
Unlike the Baroque style, the classic ceiling does not require special attention - neither painting nor gilded elements. However, if the ceiling height is sufficient, you can use plain stucco molding - ceiling roses, baseboards and moldings . If the living room is in an apartment with a standard ceiling height, it is better to avoid the use of heavy elements, leaving a flat, uniform surface. In some cases, it is possible to use a glossy texture to visually increase its height.
Lighting
Living room lighting should be of high quality, regardless of style. The classic style is emphasized by an antique-style chandelier. Decorated wrought iron sconces are mounted on the walls. Additionally, the hall can be equipped with bright floor lamps with fabric lampshades. The lamps are decorated with mirror elements that can create unusual shimmers. If the room is equipped with a fireplace, then it is appropriate to place candlesticks on the mantelpiece. Their dim glow will create a cozy atmosphere and give the object notes of the Victorian era.
Classic style living room furniture
The first image that appears when you hear the phrase “classic interior” is wooden, heavy cabinet furniture in dark or natural shades, armchairs and sofas with colored fabric upholstery and carved armrests, elegant banquettes, poufs and tables.
All elements must be combined with each other, both in shape and shades, and the arrangement of furniture in the living room must obey the principles of zoning and symmetry. The use of abstract or irregularly shaped furniture such as triangular tables or asymmetrical shelves is strictly unacceptable.
In addition to wooden furniture, it is allowed to use forging, glass tabletops without metal chrome parts, stone decorative elements and fireplace portals.
Decorative design
The classic stylistic direction in the living room implies the presence of exquisite luxurious decor and elegant accessories. It is possible to use figurines and wall paintings in expensive frames.
The decor will be complemented by various antiques, vases, and decorative elements made of marble, porcelain or bronze.
When designing a style in a solemn, majestic version, it is necessary to use a huge variety of golden notes in interior elements.
An interesting and original solution would be to install a fireplace in the living room, which is considered one of the main elements of the classical style. It is decorated with columns on both sides and forged elements. A burning hearth will create a calm, friendly environment.
In a large room it is possible to place a music salon by installing the piano on a mounted podium in the corner of the living room.
Curtains for the living room in a classic style
Textiles are one of the main components that create the atmosphere of a classic interior. Professional designers use complex draperies made of heavy natural fabrics, lambrequins, tiebacks and tassels in combination with weightless tulle to decorate windows, creating a real work of art from curtains.
With the help of curtains, you can decorate absolutely any space - like a window in an apartment with low ceilings, a sunny bay window of a complex shape, or panoramic windows of a modern penthouse. Window textiles are another way to change the geometry of space .
You can visually raise the ceiling with the help of flowing vertical folds on the curtains or soften the sharp corners of the bay window with lambrequin waves - in the hands of a master, an ordinary curtain becomes a professional tool and the main decoration of the living room.
The main rule when decorating a window in a classic interior remains the same - maintaining symmetry and using pastel shades. In this case, you can use a wide variety of fabrics - plain and patterned, heavy and light, natural and artificial. Caution should only be exercised in the texture of the material, because the classic design involves matte surfaces without shiny lurex or organza sparkling in the sun.
Living room in classic style with fireplace
The fireplace is rightfully considered the heart of a classic living room. And today the range and quality of electric fireplaces is so extensive that installing a fireplace in an ordinary apartment does not pose any problem.
The most important thing in the interior layout is to correctly determine the place for the future hearth, because it will become the center of the furniture group and should be clearly visible from anywhere in the living room. When placing a fireplace in a dark room with windows facing north, you can decorate the walls framing it with mirrors, expanding the space and filling it with light.
The design of the fireplace portal also plays an important role in the design. Most often, carved wood, brick, stone or their imitations are used to create a frame. The portal should be in harmony with the rest of the interior and echo the furniture, stucco molding and other decorative elements of the room.
also be used to zone the space - for example, mount it in a column separating the dining area from the living room area with sofas and armchairs.
Don’t forget about fireplace accessories - even if an electric version of the hearth is installed, forged fireplace tools and grates will add comfort and individuality, bringing the illusion of a real fire to perfection.
Harmonious combinations of white classic furniture with other colors
A room with an abundance of light furniture always attracts the eye. Designers use white items to decorate dark or small rooms. If you have a dark and small room at the same time, white furniture is the best option. It is important not to forget that a lot of light in the interior makes it faceless, so feel free to enrich the space with contrasting elements.
White can be used in different variations. Pearl, milky, ivory, cream and so on are suitable for the interior. Also, white furniture goes well with more contrasting shades - gray, beige, wood textures, glossy colors.
Kitchen-living room in a classic style: design features
The concept of a combined kitchen and living room area appeared in our country not so long ago, but quickly gained popularity, and rightly so - because this approach allows you to expand the space and avoid unnecessary partitions and corridors.
The main principle in designing a classic kitchen-living room is to create the most light and light space, all areas of which are in harmony in style, color and shapes used. The most popular colors in decoration are shades of beige, caramel, warm gray and olive.
Classic kitchen sets are often a real decoration of the interior with carved facades, balustrades, multi-level shelves and beautifully shaped domed hoods. Manufacturers equip such kitchens with stylized household appliances, decorated with patterns and aged fittings that imitate bronze, metal or brass.
In a combined space, it is necessary to take care of the harmonious combination of the kitchen set and living room furniture, avoiding sharp contrasts and dissonance.
A kitchen island, bar counter, sofa backrest or low display case will help to separate the two zones. You can also use different floor coverings or even floor levels for separation - to do this, you need to raise the kitchen area, creating a podium. Also, thanks to the vast space in the design of the kitchen-living room, you can use columns or an arch that will help zone and decorate the room.
